The World We Know Inside
by SnowyOfTheStorm
Summary: Steven is, well, Steven. Loveable, kind, rule following, But , when the Crystal Gems hear the beginning of one of Peridot's Logs, Steven's love is truly put to the test. What really is the punishment for love not allowed?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1, Warm

Steven sat down next to peridot and Lapis after a once-a-week,'beach summer fun-day'.

It was a silent and calming evening, the Smell of freshness making the entire scene almost whisper a welcome to the trio.

The wind rustled lapis' hair. She was glad to be here with her two best buds. With a sad realization, she noticed the darkening sky and begrudgingly said," Well, this was fun, but steven, you should really be getting home. You look tired."

"I look amazing..." Steven said with a smug look on his face; clearly trying to look as awake as possible.

Lapis snickered," Yes Steven, you look great, but you should really go back. I would never hear the end of it from Pearl if you stay out here late!"

"I guess..."

"Aww, It's ok Steven, " said the familiar green gem.

Steven sure was upset that he had to leave his barn mates, but he knew that he would see them again soon! After all, there was always tomorrow. Right?

...

...

(Scene change, at the temple)

"Peeeeeeaaaarrrlll, come ooooooooonnnnnnn. Stop being such a worry worm." Amethyst shape -shifted into a amethyst sized earthworm.

It was five past seven and Steven wasn't home yet. Pearl was getting extremely anxious.

"THIS IS NO TIME FOR MESSING AROUND AMETHYST! THIS IS SERIOUS! STEVEN COULD BE SERIOUSLY HURT OR WOR-" Garnet hushed Pearl.

"Look." The stoic gem pointed outside the window, to Steven walking up the stairs to the house.

Pearl sighed with relief.

"Hey Ste-man!" Amethyst shouted. "How'd it go?"

"Great! I can't wait to go back! My barn buds are the best!" Steven liked to call Peridot and Lapis his,'barn buds', because they live in a barn, obviously.

...

...

Steven got ready to sleep. He put on his PJ's and went to bed.

…

…

"It's got to be here somewhere!" Garnet shouted, lifting up a boulder. The crystal gems were at the prime kindergarten, the place that the artifact should be.

The crystal gems might as well have been at the temple the whole time, because they had found nothing out after so many hours of searching.

Suddenly Pearl gasped. She couldn't believe what she just saw.

Maybe the trip here wasn't such a waste after all...

...

...

Steven awoke peacefully. He looked over to his alarm clock. It was 10:34 AM.

He wondered what he would do today. The gems? No. They probably have some important gem mission. Connie? No. School. Steven sighed. Since he had nothing better to do, he decided to think, and reflect on life. That didn't last long.

Ring! Ring! Ring!

I wonder who that could be!

Beep! "Hello?" It was a video chat. "Steven!" The familiar voice of none other than Peridot was heard.

"Hey Peridot! What's up?"

"STEVEN!"

"Yes ?"

"SURPRISE. BARN. NOW."

Steven was happy that he finally had something to do. And he immediately jumped at the opportunity

"Ok dot. I'll be there before you know it!

...

...

"Steven!" The excited voice came from inside the barn.

It was Lapis. She came flying down to Steven with a cheerful expression on her face.

"Hi Lapis! Peridot called me and said that there was a surprise you guys wanted to show me? "

"Yes ! Close your eyes!"

Steven covered his eyes.

Lapis guided Steven to the barn entrance. Then Lapis stopped. "I'll leave you two alone." Lapis snickered.

Steven opened his eyes. What he saw amazed him. Peridot was wearing a very dark green blush on her cheeks and a stressed out look in her eyes. Around them was a scene that kinda reminded him of a ballroom, albeit very rustic. Peridot may have not understood the concept of a ballroom yet.

"Peridot-"

She interrupted Steven. "Steven. I've wanted to do this for a long time now. And the concept of doing this is... Well... I-intruiging, a-and, um.. scary... But please! Hear me out!" Peridot gulped. "I only want to try this. And with you. A-And just you. Steven ." Peridot took a deep breath. " Steven... Will y-you, Fuse with me?

Steven was thoroughly surprised.

The two words 'Peridot', and 'fusion', aren't usually heard together.

"So, what'll it...be?" Peridot said nervously.

Steven snapped back into reality.

Do it. Yes . Please! No..

Stevens thoughts whirled around him. But the one that stood out the most was...

"Yes ."

"Shall we?" Steven took Peridot's outstretched hand. Peridot was very surprised at his awnser. She truly wasn't expecting any positive awnser from him.

"Yes."

Peridot then pressed a button from behind her. Starting to play a calm rock song.

And then they started dancing.

Peridot's movements were fluid. She must have planned this for quite a while. Classic Peridot.

They had been dancing for about five minutes when Peridot stopped. She had stars in her eyes and a huge blush on her face. She wanted to say so much but all she managed to spit out was,

"Thank you.."

Steven was about to say 'no problem', before a blinding light surrounded the duo.

...

...

It was a crushed recorder. Peridot's recorder. And it was stuck on these lines...

"..Steven...Mus...contact..." It broke up before returning to a later log.

"Log date. 9 31 6... Status... Well, earthbound. Homesick. If that's the word...I.. am uncertain on what comes next. Hah. What am I kidding, something will happen to this planet eventually... And even though staying with the crystal gems has been, well, nice, No. No. They did this to me. Steven did this to me... If he had just let me die out here, then I wouldn't have to suffer like I am now.." She broke Ito a sob" you know what? I'll go back. I'll shatter them all. I hate them. Pearl. Garnet. Amethyst. Steven. They mean nothing to me. The jig is up. I want to rip their gems out of their bodies. Homeworld will make good use of the shards. Zzzzzzzzzzztttttttttttttttttttt bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz" the rest was static.

Peridot. Out.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2, The heart of Us

There was a bright light...

And then...

There was one.

It opened up it's eyes. It looked around. It stood up.

"Did... You...I...We... Do it?"

It caught a glimpse of itself in a shiny meep-morp.

It had messy, dark green hair, and a visor that covered it's two, chartreuse, large eyes, Currently with stars in it's pupils. It had a red, half shirt with a yellow star holded by two black straps. It had an exposed rose quartz gem on it's naval and a Peridot on it's forehead. It was wearing blue jean shorts with green leggings that ended with yellow sock- type cloth on it's feet.

And then it shouted.

"We actually did it! Wow! W-I need to show Lapis." And so they laughed,And ran down to where Lapis was reading a magazine about.. well... Jewelry?

Before Lapis noticed that it was here, she spoke," Oh hey Peridot. I was just reading up on how earth imprisions their gems in neck straps and wrist stra-"

Lapis was staring at it like it had six heads. "It.. worked?"

"It did! I guess all of Peridot's hard work really paid off! Thanks for pushing Peridot into trying Lapis!" It had a giddy grin on it's face.

"Your welcome... Um...Steve..Peri... Who are you?"

It thought for a moment. _The logical name for a rose quartz Peridot fusion should be, nothing! Because I shouldn't exist!_

It glanced over to lapis' magazine. It's eyes were on a page with a message saying,'buy now! Rare gemstones of all types on sale! Includes, citrine, amethyst, diamond, tourmaline, Jade...,' the list went on. But then a spark lit up in it's head. And it felt like one of these names connected with it.

It was her.

Tourmaline.

...

...

"Our gem shards will make good use to homeworld huh? Well her shards would make good use... AAHH I'm too ANGRY!" Amethyst shouted.

All three gems were furious and heading to the barn to 'deal with' Peridot. And when they meant deal with, they meant...

Shattering.

...

...

(At the barn)

Tourmaline was happy. She felt secure. Being fused felt like nothing one of her halves had ever felt before. It was new, exiting, like a warm hug all over. They started to converse since they really had nothing better to do.

"I was nervous asking you to do this with me..."

"You know you can ask me anything,"

She put one arm up to her head.

"I know and I shouldn't have been scared. Well, I guess the real question is, why didn't I ask sooner?

Tourmaline chuckled, and then laughed. She, for once in her life, was truly happy. There was no one she would rather be than herself.

Then she ran across the fields. An occasional chuckle or 'woo-hoo!' coming out of her mouth. Soon she decided to stop and rest.

There Tourmaline lay on her back, enjoying the sights around her. She was so happy, a tear ran down her cheek.

And then she saw something through the corner of her eye. Three things. Tall and angry looking.

And they were approaching quickly.

"PERIDOT!" She heard Garnet scream. Tourmaline was terrified! _Why are they mad at Peridot?_ Shethought to herself. The gems were approaching faster than Tourmaline thought.

Before she had another thought, there was a spear pointed directly at the gem on her forehead. She looked up. All three of them had cold, murderous glares in their eyes, weapons drawn and ready to strike at any further movement from Tourmaline.

"eep!"

"Steven, unfuse with her right now." Garnet spoke as calm as she could be in this situation. So she unfused. Mostly on Steven's part, as he did not want trouble with Garnet.

As soon as they were sperate, Garnet spoke again. "Our shards will make of good use to the diamonds huh? Well your shards will make good use , BURNING IN A FIRE!"

Peridot was horrified, Steven was about to summon his shield in protection of her, but then she spoke. "What did I do? What did I say?" Peridot was shaking ferociously by now.

Then amethyst pulled out a tape recorder. _My old log!_

 _Flashback_

 _..._

 _..._

 _(Peridot had just recorded the message)_

 _"Peridot, out."_

 _She clicked the button that stopped her message._

 _I really need some time..._

 _"GAAAHHH!_

 _Peridot threw her recorder into the dead kindergarten sand._

 _"I hope no one ever hears that last log..." Peridot regretted what she had said in that one. She hadn't meant to be so harsh towards the crystal gems... Especially Steven... She really just needed to vent out._

 _After all, she still felt like an alien on a strange planet._

 _Peridot ran out of the kindergarten, leaving her recorder to rot. She would go back to the barn. Back to lapis..._

 _But what she really wanted was to go home. She had read on the Earth-website that the meaning of home was the place or person where you feel safe in/with._

 _And for her, she felt like her home was..._

 _Him._

(Flash forward)

...

...

"Oh. Oh. Oh no" Peridot stared wide eyes at the tape recorder.

"I-I-I-"

"SHUT UP PERIDOT!" The trio put their weapons so close to Peridot that Steven couldn't help but...

"LEAVE HER ALONE!"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3, Escape ourselves

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" Steven shouted with a protective fury in his words. He thankfully brought out his shield and proceeded to stay in front of Peridot.

The crystal gems looked completely dumbfounded. "Steven! Move out of the way!" Pearl cried.

"No! You're going to hurt her!"

"Steven, move. NOW!"

Garnet pushed Steven away. He let out a grunt as he landed on the coarse sand.

"You will pay for what you've done. And we won't make it painless!"

Peridot was horrified. Letting out sobs and quakes every few seconds.

Then Pearl's spear got centemeters away from Peridot's gem. And then everything clicked in Steven's mind.

 _I have to save her!_

So he ran as fast as he could towards the cowering gem, when he felt a strong hand block him and hold him by the collar.

"You really want to protect this homeworld scum?" Garnet began,

"She's no scum, she's an amazing gem who's funny, smart, and my best friend!"

"yes , she is!"

"no she's not! whatever she said on that log, It doesn't matter! The past is in the past!"

"The past determines that she will kill in the future!"

"She would never kill! Right now, I think the real killer... Is you!"

Garnet laughed." Makes sense. Your mom was homeworld scum too. And that makes you her little dirty, disgusting hybrid, diamond abomination. Isn't that Right, Pink Diamond,"

Steven couldn't believe his ears. Garnet. His trusted guardian, would stoop so low as to call him _Pink Diamond? his mother's name?_

Even Garnet and the rest of the gems were paralysed in shock of her words.

 _Here's my chance!_

So he wrangled himself out of Garnet's grasp and ran towards Peridot. He grabbed her hand and ran.

They just ran.

Steven didn't want to go back anyways. The gems obviously hated him for being Pink Diamond,(minus Pearl, who wanted her back, and wanted him dead).

So he was going to run, with Peridot,

The only one that cares...

All Steven felt was the cold ocean breeze on his face and the hard grasp of Peridot's hand on his and he ran,

And ran...

And ran...

Until they found themselves near the exit to beach City. Steven knew exactly where they would go.

To the kindergarten.

...

...

The gems were frozen in shock. There was a beating silence.

"WHAT WAS THAT!" Amethyst yelled out of nowhere.

Garnet didn't have a response. She was in shock about what she had said herself.

"I..."

"No! You really had to do it huh? You had to stoop that low?! And now look what you caused! Steven and Peridot are gone and it's all your fault! He probably thinks we hate him! And to make things worse, you called him _Pink Diamond_! And now he's off with the enemy, probably sulking and thinking that 'Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl never really cared about me', and it's **All your fault!** "

Amethyst's words stung more than a trillion little gem shards cutting through her. _I did this to Steven, if only I hadn't lashed out_...

Pearl finally spoke up, "We can't dwell in the past now, we have a job to do... Find Steven, shatter Peridot, and move on, got it?" Pearl was the most collective and fit to be leader at the time. Everyone nodded in agreement.

...

...

(Steven and Peridot are in the train car)

Peridot was dazed, confused, and scared about what was happening. One moment she was going to be shattered, the next she was in a train car.

"Steven, why did you save me? After what I said in the log, you should hate me by now!" She choked on those last words.

"It doesn't matter Peridot! The past is the past! And I want a future. A future with _you_ in it Peridot! And wherever we are, I will protect you.

Peridot let some air out. "Steven. I-I understand. And the truth is? I want my future to have you in it too!" She let out a solemn laugh.

"I won't let anyone hurt you!" They said in unison. They didn't notice their bodies becoming light and merging together.

Tourmaline opened her eyes. "I'm back."

The train car skidded to a stop. They were here. The destination.

The kindergarten.

Tourmaline was here. Away from responsibility, Away from the ones they used to care about.

Tourmaline had formed a plan on where she would spend the rest of existence. Where her two halves would be forever.

 _Shing!_ They opened the door to Peridot's secret underground chainber. As they slid down the slanted wall, they lodged a green, round-edged rectangular shield into a crack, preventing it from being opened by anyone.

When they got to the bottom, they realized that nothing has changed since they were last there. There were ruins of old gem tech that was destroyed by the crystal gems, from the time that...

Boom! Two figures were slammed to the ground. One was curled up in a ball, on the verge of tears, the other looked like he had been hurt.

"Peridot, it's no big deal, really!"

"Yes it is! I could have killed you back then!"

"But back then was back then! I don't care about who you used to be! I just care about who you are now. A caring, kind, smart gem who isn't afraid of anything!"

"I-but-I-"

"No! You aren't bad anymore! I know you aren't! Because if you were still bad, then we wouldn't be here now. And I wouldn't be able to tell you that I lo-"

Steven and Peridot locked eyes, Peridot's mouth wide open.

"What I meant was-"

"AAH!"

Peridot ran to the other side of the large room, running to hide behind some rubble.

 _What just happened? Why am I having this feeling? AAH! If we were together again than I would know what I'm doing! Because on my own, I'm just..._

 _Lost._


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4, Here we Go Again

(Song in this chapter: Tokyovania Control by SharaX, and Bruno is Orange by Hop Along)

Peridot let out a few pent up sobs before completely wracking with sadness.

She thought some very horrible things. She was beginning to panic. _Idiot! Clod! You freak! You really think that he meant that he loved you? He would never want someone as idiotic and ugly as you. You're just a Peridot. He deserves better! You almost killed him. You murderer! He doesn't like you at all!_

She was hyperventilating and sobbing. Her anxiety taking over. She just wanted to dissapear. She found a peice of sharp rubble next to her knees. She lifted it up to her gem and took a swing at it. A piece cracked off of, leaving an incomplete look to it. She was about to crack off more when she saw a glimpse of Steven. He was almost as wrecked as she was, looking at his hands and shaking ferociously.

"Steven I-" _this isn't going to help him at all, idiot._ More tears fell off her face.

 _Maybe if I..._

And then she started to sing. She didn't know what Steven was feeling, but maybe singing would help him. Maybe it Would help Steven get over his worries.

"Everything is lost inside"

(Art by me)

"I can't break through nor can I hide"

 _Is she... Singing?_ Steven wondered from the other side. Steven slowly crawled out of his hiding place until he was clearly visible to Peridot. They locked eyes.

"But something drives me to the edge," Peridot was now walking towards Steven.

"What lies beyond is still unsaid" Peridot reached her hand out to touch Steven's.

And then they both danced and sung, with tears in their eyes.

 _How'd I get this feeling,_

 _I am running from this beauty_

 _Misunderstood for whom it's made for_

 _There's no purpose_

 _Words are worthless_

 _Well it's charming_

 _I'd say sorry_

 _My mistake to let it harm me_

 _Pardon my heart, oh_

 _Though it hurts_

 _It still sounds special_

 _Given to me_

 _Heh, oh well._

"Peridot, I have something to say, I-"

"I need to say something too!

"Let's say it together, on the count of three. One, two, three.

"I LOVE YOU!"

And then they kissed. Tears in their eyes. They were holding each other so tight that they could almost feel the love ferociously being released with one simple action. Once they released from it, they started to laugh and spin around.

"I'll never Leave you!" They cried in unison.

And suddenly , tourmaline was back.

If Tourmaline were ever to split again, than it wouldn't be in the near future.

She had never thought that this exact scenario would happen. The scenario where she never wanted to split apart.

 _I guess now, I'm a permafusion?_ She thought. And then it got to her.

 _This is a lot like the story ... that Garnet told me..._

 _Two gems, in love, trying to escape the system to finally be free._

And now that was her. Except there was no rebellion to come and save her this time. She was together, but alone.

Her train of thought was interrupted by a banging sound above her. It started as a quiet noise, but soon grew to an unbearable pound.

"What is going on? Is it a corrupted-" She was cut off by a strikingly familiar voice crying from above.

"Oh my...lodged...in there!..." That was all she could decipher from the voice above. Then she realized who it was.

 _The gems! We should have found a better hiding place!_

Tourmaline suddenly felt dread creep up her skin. She knew now that she had been found. Then she remembered Steven and Peridot's promise to each other. _I won't let anyone hurt you!_ She felt determination overweigh her stress and looked around for a broken peice of rubble for her to hide behind.

She had found a place just in time for the crystal gems to burst through the roof.

They were throwing over broken glass, smashing through rocks, and letting out cries of anger in not finding them. Tourmaline was so afraid, that she started to whimper like a little kid. She tried to be as quiet as possible, but she soon realized that a pair of eyes had been laid on her.

 _Crash!_ "THERE SHE IS! Get her!" Garnet's voice cried through the walls of the hideout.

Instead of seeing the small green gem behind the rock, she saw something much worse.

Steven had fused with Peridot again, and looked so distraught.

"D-Don't... Don't HURT HER!" Tourmaline screamed. "She's just a kid! Fifteen to be exact! Y-you couldn't- you c-cant hurt us-me...I-I-"

"Pearl! Aim for her gem. Steven is not to be harmed." Then she directed her voice to Tourmaline. "If you won't unfuse, than we'll have to make you."

"Yes Garnet." Pearl nodded.

Pearl then jumped at the fusion, spear pointed directly at the gem on her forehead.

That was when Tourmaline screamed,

"Pearl wait!

Pearl had Got so distracted by the exclamation, that she completely lost track of her spear and it went straight through Steven's gem with an earsplitting crash.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

Tourmaline screamed. She started to cry in pain. She started to cry so hard that the crystal gems dropped their weapons and stared in shock over what happened. Pearl started to walk back in slow and torturous steps. _My baby. I just shattered Steven. I just killed Steven._ The thoughts hit her sharper than a sword slicing through her physical form.

"PERIDOT! YOU WERE ONLY SUPPOSED TO TOUCH PERIDOT'S GEM!" Garnet screamed at Pearl.

Their already very upset demeanor turned even more horrified as Tourmaline let out a **WAAAHHHH!** Cracks started to crawl up her face, arms, and legs. More peices started to crumble off of the gem on her naval. Tourmaline looked and sounded like a kid more and more. A young, defenseless kid. Garnet looked into her eyes, terror haunted her gaze. And then realization punched her in the face. She was trying to kill a child. An _infant_ in gem years.

"W-why?" Tourmaline managed to whisper. "Steven and Peridot love e-eachother, and you try to tear them apart?" She let out a shaky painful breath before continuing,"They promised each other that neither one of them would let them be hurt as long as they lived... But now Steven is... And... I will survive...for him. I can't let go. I can't let him be shattered. I won't let him die as long as I exist. Which might not be too much longer... But before I die, I mean, before you shatter Peridot, I have to ask you something.

"Pearl, Amethyst, go to Rose's fountain _now._ And you," she pointed at Tourmaline,"Are coming with me."

...

...

The beach house was deathly silent as Garnet and tourmaline arrived through the warp pad. With an _oomph_ from Tourmaline as more pain from the landing pulsed through her body. Garnet signified for Tourmaline to sit down next to her on the couch.

"What. What do you want to ask me."

Tourmaline let out a sigh as she began.

" _Garnet, what did you tell the boy?_

 _He's a clever kid, did you know ?_

 _I bet he knows, what it all is worth._

 _And I know you know I know_

 _I can't control bout' some_

 _Things I need and I believe_

 _Everybody needs_

 _Some encouragement_

 _I think it's real unfair,_

 _You should put him there,_

 _All we did was kiss,_

 _On my grave I swear,_

 _Where did you find his shoes_

 _A lock of my hair_

 _all we did was kiss_

 _On my grave I swear..."_

 _"_ **Why?! Why does Peridot love Steven! I don't understand!"**

" _Some dull morning, we were wearing sheets,_

 _Come on Peri! Let's go!_

 _And he whispered_

 _I think that they know better than me._

 _See this hand, that pushed you into the creek,_

 _I'm sorry Peridot, I didn't mean to, but it was really funny !_

 _I'm sorry 'was just fun' we were laughing,_

 _We went running towards the street._

 _And I wrote my name,_

 _Into the fresh painted yellow line,_

 _And you wrote your name_

 _That looks great! The beach looks better than ever! Especially when your name is there..._

 _Right there next to mine..."_

Tourmaline started to sob.

" _We had to dodge a truck,_

 _We almost hit a bug_

 _I think we had some luck_

 _And for two bucks,_

 _We bought some bread,_

 _And feed the gray geese_

 _And the ducks_

 _Did you know that the boy, is_

 _An armed man,_

 _Bearing flowers,_

 _And two hands..._

 _Very able to hold me,_

 _Down.._

 _And love me more than anyone..."_

She stood up in tears and slowly walked towards Garnet.

 _"Garnet!_

 _What Happened to your consent_

 _I broke down_

 _That boys good,_

 _I bet he knows,_

 _What it all is worth._

 _Did you hear about that mother?_

 _Broke her daughter's legs in two?_

 _And said it's to dangerous out there to walk so_

 _I had to save you_

 _Everyone will yell,_

 _Everyone will yell,_

 _I'd thank you just the same_

 _If you didn't tell_

 _The diamonds say that we are damned to go to hell,_

 _Please be a good gem,_

 _Please say you won't tell..._

 _Steven..."_ She broke a small smile.

" _Did you know, the gems?"_ Garnet started to walk backwards. Matched with Tourmaline's jagged, trembling steps towards her, leaving trails of broken prices behind her.

 _On homeworld would destroy us, we are_

 _Non-believers, and I'm still alive,_

 _But they agree._

 _Do they believe,_

 _That a loved one warms the heart..."_

And then she started to converse with herself.

"Steven, I'm so sorry!"

"I'm still alive, _barely_ , It's ok! We can make it! We just have to push through!"

"Steven..?"

"Yeah?"

"This hurts."

"I know. At... At least we get to go through this together though."

But Garnet had something to say.

"I still don't get it. Oh wait. Maybe I do."

Crash! Peridot's gem had just been hit by Garnet's gauntlets and shattered, almost, like steven's.

"HOMEWORLD SCUM SHOULD STICK TOGETHER!"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5, A little Less like you

Pain. Unbearable pain. The kind of pain that makes you want to die.

That was what Tourmaline was experiencing right now. She hadn't made a sound; hadn't made a move since her forehead gem had been pulverized to peices. She just stared wide-eyed at Garnet. Her eyes threatened to go blank at any second.

"Why?" She managed to spill out before a _poof!_ And before she knew it, two gems were sitting on the ground. Green and Pink respectively.

"Good. I don't have to deal with that abomination anymore."

The warp pad blazed as two gems popped out of the stream. "We got the...tears? Garnet, where are they?" Amethyst spoke.

"Gone." Garnet showed the two broken gems to the others.

"GARNET, you've gone too far! Give them to me!" Pearl shouted.

"I've gone too far? Me? No. They are like souls. Destined to die. You know what? I have an even better idea. Let's separate them and keep them in prison. That'll serve them."

And so Garnet created a bubble, big enough for one gem, and violently tossed Peridot's gem inside. And than she made another, and tossed Steven's gem inside too. She then took one and put it on Steven's bed, and took the other outside to be buried in the sand. Pearl and Amethyst were chatting quietly about the Garnet situation and why she was acting this way. For a second back when Steven was cracked to oblivion, they thought that they'd a hint of remorse in her eyes, but all hope of that was lost when she did the same to Peridot's gem. The remaining two gems never _really_ wanted to shatter Peridot after they saw how young she was, but Garnet was the leader, after all, and they had to abide to her rules...

"I've heard in old gem folklore that fusions of two different gems, after not splitting apart for a while, can get so synced with with each other that emotions are taken to the extreme. I just... Wasn't expecting it to be true. They told me back on homeworld that that is why they banned cross gem fusion, I just assumed it was a lie..." Pearl vented.

"I guess. Actually, to be honest, I think they are kind of cute together. Peridot and Steven. And I really think that shattering her was a little too far. After all, it was just a silly log. You Know what? I need stevidot to happen. The past is the past! Whenever we have the chance, we heal them and let them out. Got it?"

"Yes ."

Just as they finished their conversation, a green gem rose from the floor, forming a severely deformed version of Peridot.

"Steven! Where are you!"

Every inch of Peridot's being was painful. Her limbs hanging by a thread. But she wouldn't give up. She couldn't give up. Not until she found the one she loved the most. She seemed to be surrounded by a bubble.

She tried slamming her fists on the walls of it, but every swing made the purple field seem more and more indestructible.

"STEVEN!"

...

...

Steven awoke with a shrill Yelp. His whole body wracking with pain. He looked down at his gem, and reality hit him. He was extremely close to the breaking point. Then he thought to his mate, and realized that she had been broken too. That horrifying moment replayed in his mind, the hard anxiety of Tourmaline before Garnet had obliterated Peridot, the song, being poofed.

And then Steven realized something. He was being surrounded by something. Something smooth, circular, and purple.

He was in a bubble.

But surrounding the bubble was something dark, and gritty looking. _I must be buried under the sand!_

He now desperately wanted to get out.

"Help! Help! Somebody, anybody!"

"PERIDOT!"

...

...

Peridot pounded on the purple walls, getting more desperate by the second. She was hyperventilating and sobbing for freedom. But she paused when she saw Pearl and Amethyst staring at her.

"No! DON'T SHATTER ME! Please! I-I-"

"Peridot. We're sorry." Peridot was so surprised by their response. "I- but the LOG! I said horrible things to you! I DoN't DeSeRvE YoUr MeRcY! I'm the sorry one!"

"Nonono no wait Peri! We didn't ever really want to shatter you! We were just following Garnet's orders! You didn't mean what you said about us, did you?"

"N- no. I just needed to ven- Gah!" Peridot winced in pain.

"Oh Peridot. You poor thing! I'm so sorry this had to happen to you. Amethyst, help me get her out." And so they started to pound on the bubble, summoning their weapons and slashing until they had dented it.

Several minutes later the gems had created a reasonably sized hole for Peridot to crawl out of. As the jagged edges tugged at her appearance modifiers, she struggled to get out. But eventually she made it with a thump! On the ground.

"Thank you! D-do you by any chance know where Steven is?"

"Garnet is out on the beach, and she brought Steven with her, so that must mean..."

Pearl was frozen for a few seconds.

"He must be buried in the sand!"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6, Breaking the Codes of History

Pearl, amethyst, and a struggling Peridot ran outside in search of Steven. Each gem was shoveling and digging their way through the beach. Their fierce determination carrying them through.

Suddenly, another person walked apon the beach. "Steven, I need your signa-", Jamie the mailman paused mid sentence at the sight of Peridot. She was disheveled, her arms and legs barely hanging by a thread. Her visor cracked to oblivion, but her gem looked much worse. Rivlets crawled everywhere on her body and tears were feircely rolling down her cheeks. She and two other gems were digging at the now deformed mass of sand. "STEVEN! HOLd On!" The green one screamed.

"Oh. my. Gosh." Jamie dropped the packages and ran.

The doors of the Beach city Postal Service building slammed open, a huffing Jamie ran straight into Barb. "Jamie? What's all this about?!"

"It was terrible! On Steven's side of the beach, two people and a _thing were_ digging at the sand! They were yelling Steven's name! I think he's been buried in the sand! They need help!"

And with that, they went around the town to spread the news, that their little Steven was in danger. And before they knew it, the whole entire town was on their way to the temple.

Peridot noticed the crowd first. "Look! We have help!" She shrieked. A second later, the entire town was digging.

Several minutes later, hope was all but lost.

Until Sadie saw something purple."ITS STEVEN! He's stuck in this bubble!" Amethyst bolted over and bashed the bubble open.

Steven opened his eyes slowly, the sound of shreiks sounded above him. And then all of the bad memories flooded back into him. The fusion, being broken , being separated, _Peridot_ , being buried, the pain. All of it. He was almost as disheveled as Peridot. Then he jumped to his feet. _Agh!_ He winced in pain. But that didn't matter. All that mattered was finding Peridot. _Peridot. Peridot. Peridot._ His heart beat a thousand times a second apon thinking about his lover. People were fussing around him, clearly worried, but that didn't matter. And in his scramble, he caught a glimpse of a familiar eye. A _green_ eye, Across the beach. His heart swelled with overwhelming joy. She must have seen him too because tears were visibly Rolling down her face even faster and a joyful smile cracked across her face.

The green gem smiled widely at the sight of her partner, _alive!_ "STEVEN!" She shouted and started running towards him.

Steven started to sob and smile ferociously at the sight of Peridot's beautiful face. As she shouted his name, he couldn't help but also do the same. **"PERIDOT!"**

The pair ran towards each other, arms outstretched and ready to embrace their partner. The collective crowd parted ways for the two broken gems. They formed a half circle around them, ready to watch the scene unfold.

The two gems approached each other and squeezed themselves so tight. Then they found themselves in a deep kiss. As they released, Steven reached towards Peridot as he took off her visor. "You're..."

"Is it that bad?" Peridot blushed.

"No! You look beautiful! So beautiful..."

Then Peridot caught sight of his arm. "Did they hurt you?"

"No! No... I'm okay! Did they hurt _you_?"

"Who cares!"

" _I_ do!"

Peridot kissed Steven's cheek as they spun around each other and laughed. Soon a bright light eminated out of them and they formed Tourmaline. Sighing in relief, Tourmaline hugged herself tightly. She barely heard the applause coming from the crowd of people.

But when she did, she was surprised and a bit anxious to be in front of a crowd.

"Um... Hi! I'm Tour..Maline a-and I'm a... Fusion, between Steven... And his... Girlfriend, Peridot!"

But Tourmaline wasn't finished.

"Love is an amazing thing. Never take it for granted. Because any moment, it could be taken away from you. But it can also give you hope. Hope that no matter how bad, and how broken you are," she moved her hand to both of her gems," Things _will_ get better. And with the ones you love the most," Tourmaline shed a tear," you can _finally_... Be free!"

Tourmaline raised her right hand up to the sky, like she was reaching for something untouchable. But the bittersweet moment was broken when the familiar form of Garnet was walking out of the ocean.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7, The World We Used to KnoW Inside

A heartbeat.

A smiling face.

A water droplet.

A snap.

Anger. Fear. Feirce energy. Pure power pulsed and bounced off the walls of her body. A fire was lit inside of her when she saw that all too familiar shape of Garnet. A Disgusting revolting look appeared on Tourmaline's face, taking literally every one in the crowd by surprise. Surprised at how someone taken as anxious and gentle could even be able to bear that look on her face.

Garnet was fuming. _How dare they betray me and let them out?_ She summoned her gauntlets, ready to pulverized anyone and anything that crossed her path.

The sky was a dirty red. Clouds littered it. Tense air blew at Tourmaline's hair as she stood face to face with Garnet. Internally, she was trembling with uttermost anxiety and fear, but she had already made a promise. A vow to herself.

 _ **I won't break first.**_

The crowd around them had gaping mouths as if they were watching a really entrancing movie. But no soul dared speak or move a muscle, not even Pearl and Amethyst. This was their fight . Their time to prove that they were more than this.

Tourmaline and Garnet started circling each other, but Tourmaline had other plans. She ran up to Garnet, took a deep breath, and leaped. A wavering whistle was heard in the air as Tourmaline summoned her weapon. A circular green sheild With a yellow star appeared in the center. Around the sheild appeared four trapezoid shaped blades. They spinnned around the sheild as Tourmaline prepared her blow. As the sheild was about to touch Garnet, she grabbed the sheild with both of her gauntlets, and a **boom** echoed around the full beach. The sheer impact of the hit shook the entire beach.

Tourmaline was shot to the ground. Panting, she rose shakily, ready to do what had to be done. "Why Garnet? Why do you refuse to let us live-" She charged at her again."Together?" The blades around her sheild separated and flew towards Garnet. She dodged each and every blade that was thrown at her. Tourmaline let out a gasp as her best efforts were dodged like she never even threw anything at her.

Had all of her best efforts been swiped off of Garnet's neck like a droplet of sweat? That wasn't fair at all!

"Because, homeworld made me suffer, so I make them suffer back." She responded to her earlier question.

Still grounded, her body flared with anger once again. "YOU STILL THINK YOU CAN PUSH US AROUND LIKE THIS? IT'S NOT FAIR!" She stood up and pointed a finger at Garnet. "You don't get to do this! You don't get to say that!" She shrieked. Tears formed in her eyes. "Do you even know how much pain you've caused me?" She was trembling now. "I can't stand it anymore! What's your problem! Because I think... I think that you're acting a lot like homeworld does!"

"Do _Not_ compare me to homeworld! I am nothing like them."

"But you are."

"You tryed to separate them. Homeworld did that to you."

Her gaze was blazing into Garnet's as she spoke.

"You said they were unnaceptable. Homeworld did that to you. You forbade their love. Homeworld did that to you. "You broke them, and treated them like garbage. Homeworld did. That. To. **YOU!"** She made a running jump at Garnet, more powerful and crushing than before, and tackled her to the floor. She summoned a blade from her sheild and started frantically stabbing at Garnet's gems as the other was completely helpless to her attacks.

" **Hypocrite! Hypocrite! Hypocrite-"** she kept shouting as she continuously staBbed her.

That's when the gems stepped in. "Tourmaline stop!" Amethyst shouted. "She's gone!"

But Tourmaline wouldn't listen. She kept ruthlessly stabbing. That's when Pearl and Amethyst had to pull her off themselves. They arm locked her. She started kicking and thrashing, saying "let me go!" And sobbing angrily. After many minutes, the last string was pulled.

"Le-eh-t M-e" Suddenly, a shower of pink shards tumbled out of Steven's gem, and she lost consciousness. A bright light split Her apart.

Peridot was wide awake and crying, while shaking the lifeless body of

Steven.

"He can't be g-gone, can he?" The miserable broken gem said.

Pearl, struggling to keep herself together, cried,"This is something that even healing tears can't heal."

...

...

It had been a week since Steven and Garnet's death and just about everyone was mourning. All of the town had moved slower as Steven wasn't there to make it run faster.

Greg and Connie were devistated, obviously, and rarely visited The temple anymore.

The crystal gems, or what remained of them had carried on with their duties begrudgingly, and often cried over their baby.

But the worst case of all was Peridot.

After she was healed, She now basically lived in the beach house, rarely speaking to anyone and crying throughout the night. All she did was sleep and cry. She had taken one of Steven's hoodies while the other gems had packed up all his things in boxes. All that was still out was Steven's bed in which Peridot slept in. She had been wearing the hoodie the entire week, never taking it off. Despite the gems constant attempts to pull her out of depression, she would persist in being completely depressed.

One day, the gems made something for her.

"Peridot." Amethyst poked her back.

"What do you want with me?" Peridot said slurring.

"Come downstairs dude! I can't stand seeing you like this!"

"No. I'm never getting up."

"Please Peri! I know your sad over Steven, I know you loved him, we all did! But you have to move on eventually!"

Peridot turned her head to look at her. She looked bad. Her lower eyelids were dark and her cheeks were tear stained. "What if I don't want to?" "What if I want to hold on to Steven until the end of time?"

Amethyst sighed. "I get it. You probably loved Steven even more than anyone. But if you don't try anymore, than you won't realize that there are people who care about you. So whaddya say, wanna come with me?"

"Fine. But only a minute."

"Yes !"

And so she trudged downstairs slowly. As amethyst tapped her shoulder, she looked up Above the door.

Instead of there being a picture of rose quartz, there was a portrait of Steven and herself hugging together, with words etched on to it saying, 'to the love that lasts beyond death.'

And for once in a long time, Peridot smiled.

THE END

(Thanks everyone. I'm literally crying right now. I don't know what to say. See you all in my next story!)

-Snowy


	8. Epilogue

A throbbing Pain in Peridot's forehead wracked through her body, all the sounds and sights around her fading to nothingness. Just as she was feeling better about her lost love, she was faced with this! But honestly, thinking about him would make her feel a lot better...

 _Peridot walked through the kindergarten, head lowered in a search. For what? It was unknown, but she knew that she had to keep looking._

 _After many minutes of continuous walking, her mind started to drift. When suddenly she tripped over something soft. She picked herself up to her feet and looked down to where she had fallen._

 _And what she saw, she wished she had never seen._

 _Tourmaline lay dead on the ground, pale and lifeless. Both her gems were gouged out and on the ground, scattered and dead, lacking purpose anymore. Her visor looked like it had when they had fought, a giant hole in it, leaving the gem exposed and left eye partially shown._

 _Peridot kneeled down and examined her, shifting her green hand about in the shards, picking up a peice of hers and Steven's, each returned to pink and green respectively. Although she already knew he was dead, she couldn't help but let a tear roll down her cheek._

 _She then took the two shards, and held them up to her chest, the two touching each other lightly._

 _Bam!_

 _A small explosion took place, making Peridot shriek in surprise. She dropped the shards with a clink._

 _As she was about to pick the two shards up again, she saw something different: the two shards had become one and taken a dark pink and green hue. Her eyes widened at the sight. Maybe I can do that with the rest! She thought._

 _So she picked up the rest of the shards and placed them together, matching them in the forehead gem. Surprisingly, all of the shards fit inside the one gem hole, now creating a singular gem._

 _Tourmaline stirred._

 _Peridot jumped to her feet, away from her._

 _Then tourmaline opened her eyes. They were wide with small pupils._

 _"Peridot?! Why am I here?"_

 _"I-I Don't know! You must still be inside of me because I am half of you!"_

 _"Then there might still be a chance-"_

 _She was cut off by a drifting sensation in Peridot. She was waking up._

Peridot groaned, her head still throbbing. She ran her hand over her gem, searching for the source. Everything seemed fine until

She felt a hole in her gem.

...

...

So, I've been thinking, should I write a sequel? I dunno! If you want a sequel, then Review and say it. And yes , if I do write it, it will be a continuation of the epilogue.


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